An Appropriate Punishment
by Oratorio
Summary: Shepard does her best to keep Zaeed in order. Everything she's tried has no effect on the old mercenary. Eventually his insubordination on Zorya drives her to extreme measures. M rated for a reason, folks.
1. Chapter 1

Kim Shepard opened her email with a sigh. The Illusive Man again. She didn't know why she was alive, had no idea what he wanted with her, and wouldn't trust him with a cactus let alone the lives of humankind.

_Deal struck with Zaeed Massani_, the email stated_. _Shepard snorted to herself. She was the one in charge of this ship, not the Illusive bastard. She would decide who came aboard and who would be her crew.

That said, she liked the sound of this Massani. She thought she had heard the name before, and an extranet search quickly told her why. A capable and tough mercenary, by all accounts, now mostly making a living through tracking down criminals and claiming the rewards. He had been around the block more than a few times, and that's just what Shepard needed right now. She was sick of dealing with Jacob and Miranda's Cerberus bullshit, and a straight talking soldier would be a breath of fresh air around the place.

It didn't take her long to track him down on Omega. The shouting would have been a giveaway, if not the smell. The batarian Zaeed was threatening had clearly lost control of his bowels, and lay cowering on the floor at the mercenary's feet. Shepard grinned at the fear on the batarian's face and held out her hand for Massani to shake.

"You must be Shepard, I take it," Zaeed said, his voice rough and husky.

"Got that right," Shepard said, taking the opportunity to look him up and down. She liked what she saw. Massani was considerably older than her, true, but he was hard-muscled and had clearly seen a few bitter fights as the scars on his face testified. He was expressionless and unruffled by her examination, and Shepard was pleased to find someone who wasn't intimidated by her or her reputation.

"You agree to my conditions then?"

Shepard raised an eyebrow. She was not used to people laying down rules in order to be part of her squad. This would have to be squashed pretty fast if he was to be any use to her.

"You should be grateful to be considered good enough to work with me, Massani. I hardly think you're in a position to be dictating conditions," she said.

Zaeed laughed, low and harsh. "Knew the old bastard wouldn't tell you. Not asking for much, Shepard, just got a small mission needs done with before I can focus on being a big goddamn hero and helping you save the galaxy. I don't need you any more than you need me, but we would both do better working together. So what do you say?"

She wanted to tell him to stick it where the sun doesn't shine, that arrogance got you killed and that there was no place for cocky fools on her team. Problem was, the man was right. And when it came down to their mission, ultimately Shepard knew that she had to take what she could get. She gritted her teeth.

"Fine. We'll do your _small _mission. Ship's that way – report in. I'll brief you properly later."

"Aye aye, _Ma'am_."

Massani smirked at her, casually shot the batarian in the head and sauntered off towards the Normandy. Shepard watched him go with a frown. She didn't think much of the sarcasm and swagger the mercenary was displaying, but she was confident she could lick him into shape without too much trouble. She had worked with worse.

* * *

"Making yourself at home I see, Massani," Shepard said, leaning against the door of the starboard cargo hold and watching Zaeed taking apart and oiling his rifle.

"Don't have a home, Shepard, here's as good as anywhere to me," Zaeed said, not even looking up from his work.

Shepard walked in and crouched on the floor next to where he sat. "I like to get to know who I'm working with. Care to tell me a bit about yourself?"

"Not much to tell. I kill people for money. Your guys have paid me to be here, so I'll kill people for you. Isn't that all you need to know?"

Shepard sighed. This man would be a challenge. Still, never let it be said that she didn't enjoy a challenge.

"So what led you to this career? How does a person become a merc?"

"Lots of things, Shepard. None of which I particularly want to talk about. Sorry," said Zaeed, looking nothing of the sort.

Shepard knew when she was beaten.

"Okay, so at least tell me about this mission you want us to help with. I need to know more."

"Pretty simple stuff, really. The Blue Suns have taken over the refinery at Zorya. Need to drive them out and reclaim the facility. Like I said, a small mission." Zaeed shrugged, his expression inscrutable.

"Well then. I'll add it to my list of things to do," Shepard said, retreating to the door.

"Make sure of it," Zaeed called out, as she left the room.

* * *

She wasn't lying to the man, she had every intention of asking Joker to set a course for Zorya in due time. It just wasn't top of her list of priorities. Besides, she didn't yet trust Zaeed not to take her help with his contract and then disappear. She wanted to check him out first, see what he was made of.

There was one more mission she needed to take care of before undocking from Omega. She'd received a dossier from the Illusive Man with information that an infamous rogue sniper named Archangel was operating from the station and that he would make a good addition to the squad. From what she had read, Archangel was one of the most hated people on Omega and had managed to unite the three main mercenary groups against him, trying to take him down. So far, even with their combined might, they had not succeeded. _Impressive, _Shepard thought, _I could use skills like that._

And so it was that they were in Afterlife, the music thumping painfully through Shepard's skull.

The arrogant asari, Aria, was able to give Shepard some more information about Archangel. He had apparently been taking out Omega's criminals at an eye-opening rate, ironically reducing the overall violent crime statistics on the station and pissing off some pretty nasty people along the way. There was a current push to finish him off once and for all, and he was believed to be cornered down past Kima District. The local merc groups were looking for people to make the advance. Cannon fodder, most likely.

Shepard had no hesitation in signing up. This was the quickest and best way to get to Archangel and, especially with Zaeed by her side, nobody doubted her credentials as a capable mercenary.

She stood at the end of the bridge which led to Archangel's hideout. She had seen several other groups pass that way, and they had all scattered under the hail of bullets being fired from the balcony overhead.

"Shield up," she commanded to Zaeed and Miranda who hovered at her shoulder. "Let's go get him."

She may have been surprised at the lack of shots fired at them as they crossed the bridge, a single bullet bouncing off her shields. She was more surprised when she reached Archangel and discovered who he really was.

"Garrus!"

She couldn't keep the delight out of her voice. Here at last was someone who really knew her and who she knew she could trust with her life in battle.

Someone who was very nearly taken away from her again by the roar of the gunship's cannons mere minutes later. She raced with him back to the Normandy, hoping against hope that Dr Chakwas' skill and the supplies in the medbay were enough to save his life. She was covered in blood, both blue and red, mixing together in a cruel parody of a child's innocent paint splattered artwork. Chakwas met her at the door, prising her hand from Garrus' limp talons and closing the door firmly in her face.

"She needs room to work, Shepard," Miranda said, touching her shoulder. "Give her some space."

"Oh, piss off, Lawson," Shepard shot back. "What would you understand about human emotions, you genetically engineered bitch?"

Miranda visibly recoiled and disappeared into her office. Shepard heard a chuckle from behind her.

"Harsh, Shepard," Zaeed appeared at her left shoulder. "Never knew you had such a temper on you."

"Look, Zaeed, one of my only friends in the world is in that room half-dead, I'm covered in his blood and just when I thought that I had found some sanity in this fucked-up world I have to stand by and watch as some batarian bastard tries to take him away from me. You think _that_ was temper, just keep talking and you'll find out what temper really is."

Zaeed held up his hands and took a step back. "Whoa, sweetheart, just sayin'. What's the deal between you two, anyway? Thought turians and humans were mortal enemies."

Shepard twisted her body and in a split second she had the mercenary pinned up against the wall, leaning her full weight against him and with one knee raised to keep him there. "Number one, you will not call me sweetheart. Number two, Garrus is my _friend_, not that that is any of your business, and you will _not _speculate on my private life while you are on _my_ ship. Are we clear?"

They remained frozen in position, her eyes flashing with anger and her lip trembling with the effort of holding back tears. Zaeed regarded her with a calm expression, though she could feel he was breathing faster. The air between them was tense and loaded with… what, she did not know.

Finally she backed off, spinning on her heel and stalking into the elevator, pressing the button for her cabin before Zaeed could join her.

"Clear," he said softly, to the closed door of the elevator.

* * *

Suspicious as Shepard was of the man, she couldn't fault Zaeed's commitment to his contract with her. He was a loyal, committed fighter, despite his regular insubordination and his refusal to acknowledge her as his superior. Even Garrus – thankfully recovered from his terrible injuries and proudly bearing the scars – seemed to have respect for him. That counted for a lot, in Shepard's book.

It also helped that he was patiently assisting her with missions without asking about his own. She knew that it must be on his mind, but he seemed to trust her to keep to her side of the bargain. She thought she would do just that, and was about to ask Joker to head to Zorya when a call came through from the Illusive Man.

What she heard rocked her back on her heels. Intel had come through that the Collectors were targeting a human colony on Horizon, a small planet which had recently received defensive capabilities provided by the Alliance. Alliance officers were still present calibrating these turrets, led by one Kaidan Alenko. Shepard's blood ran cold when the Illusive Man said his name, almost gleefully.

_Kaidan. _Shepard struggled for breath. She remembered the last time she had seen him like it was yesterday. For her, it wasn't long ago. For him, it would be over two years. She remembered sending him away, ordering him to the escape pods in a haze of smoke and terror. She remembered the times before that, limbs entwined and soft kisses, murmurs of adoration. His honey-coloured eyes, brimming with emotion. She had never been worshipped like that before.

It had been too painful to think of him since she had died. Nobody would tell her where he was and she had no way to contact him, so she had pushed the memories of the all too few nights they had spent together to the back of her mind, and concentrated on reinventing herself, on defeating her enemies as she always had.

But now… now, Kaidan was in danger and it was down to her to get there in time to warn him.

"Joker!" she called out over the comm system. "We need to get to Horizon ASAP."

"Roger that, Commander," Joker said, and she felt the familiar but subtle shift of the ship beneath her feet. She messaged Zaeed and Garrus to suit up and meet her on the command deck and began to prepare for what could be the worst mission of her life.

* * *

Too late. They were too late. Shepard's heart was beating in her throat as she surveyed the wreckage of the colony, only a few of its residents remaining. Those who were left behind were paralysed in some form of stasis, posed like grisly statues depicting the terror of the attack. She swallowed hard to quell the rising panic in her chest and tried to stop herself running from body to body searching for the one man she wanted to see more than anyone else.

_Press on, Shep. Be professional. _She focused on her inner voice, and kept going through the horrors surrounding her. Kept on taking down the husks, the scions, the bone-shuddering Collectors. If it took her mind off what might have happened to the man she had once shared her bed with, she would kill anything that was put in front of her without a moment's hesitation. She just hoped she was still saving Kaidan, not avenging him.

Shepard was exhausted by the time the three of them took down the Praetorian, a mobile Reaper-controlled unit fortified with particle beams. It was one of the toughest fights she had experienced, and she knew they had only managed it by working as a perfectly harmonious team. She turned to thank Zaeed and Garrus, and was brought up short by the old mechanic they had encountered earlier, the only conscious colonist they had seen.

"Get after that ship!" he was shouting, hysterical, pointing towards where the Collector ship had been docked. It had disengaged from the planet and disappeared shortly after they had killed the Praetorian. "Half our colony is on that ship! Get them back!"

"I'm sorry. I did what I could," she told him, knowing that it was too late for those on board.

"You did more than most would, Shepard," said Garrus, his voice melodic and gentle in her ear, his hand resting on her shoulder. She was grateful for his steady presence, always there to fortify her when things were tough.

"Not nearly enough!" The mechanic was screaming now, his hands curled into fists. She watched him with some trepidation and saw the exact moment the penny dropped after Garrus' words.

"Wait," he said, eyes widening. "Shepard. I know that name. Some kind of big Alliance hero, aren't you? So where were you when..."

"Commander Shepard. Captain of the Normandy. The first human Spectre. Saviour of the Citadel. You're in the presence of a legend, Delan. And a ghost."

Shepard felt as if she was going to faint. There, standing in front of her, was Kaidan Alenko, just as she remembered him. Dark hair swept back from his forehead, chestnut eyes more serious than perhaps they used to be. Olive skin, the scars around his lips which were so much more obvious when he smiled. He wasn't smiling now.

"Shepard," he said, pain in his voice, in his eyes. In three strides he was in front of her and she was in his arms, curling against him as if she was a plant seeking the sun. He felt the same, she thought, he smelled the same. Her Kaidan. She sighed and felt as if she breathed out all the toxicity of her life since the fateful day that the SR-1 fell.

"Kaidan," she said into his chest. "It's been too long. I missed you."

Suddenly she was staggering back as he pushed away from her, her body feeling cold in the absence of his arms.

"You _missed_ me, Shepard? How do you suppose I felt? How can you just show up here and act like nothing's happened? I thought you were dead. All this time, I thought you were dead. Why didn't you try to contact me, let me know you were alive?"

Shepard cringed. She had never heard this tone in Kaidan's voice before, never thought he would be capable of such bitterness.

"I _was _dead, Kaidan. For two years. It took Cerberus that long to rebuild my body. I'm sorry, I wanted to see you but nobody would tell me where you were. I -" she broke off at the flinty look in her former lover's eyes.

"I see. Cerberus, is it? Damn you, Shepard, you know what they are. It wouldn't surprise me if they were behind all these attacks, and now they have you in their pocket," Kaidan said, his voice rising.

"Kaidan, please," she tried, stepping towards him.

He turned his face to one side. "I thought we had something, Shepard. Something real. I… I _loved_ you. But now… you've turned your back on everything we believed in. You betrayed the Alliance. You betrayed me."

Shepard looked broken, her arms hanging loose by her sides, blinking hard. "But you know me, Kaidan. You know I would only do this for the right reasons."

She hated the wheedling tone she could hear in her voice, the pain and desperation she felt spilling out of her like acid.

"I want to believe you, Shepard," Kaidan said, all anger leaving him now. Now he just sounded sad. "But you've changed. I'm still an Alliance soldier and I always will be. I know where my priorities lie. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to file this report. Goodbye, Shepard. And be careful."

With those parting words, Kaidan left her standing in the middle of the battlefield, feeling as if she had never been more alone. She had to swallow hard to stop tears from springing to her eyes. Of all the things she had expected from Kaidan, this coldness had not been on the list.

_At least I know where I stand now. _She breathed in hard and straightened her shoulders before turning to face Garrus and Zaeed, who were standing silently and watching her with still expressions.

"We're done here, let's head back to the Normandy," she said brusquely.

"You okay, Shepard?" Garrus said, obvious concern in his flanged voice.

"Never better, thanks Garrus. Come on, I've had enough of this godforsaken colony. I'll radio Joker," she said, lifting her omnitool.

They stood quietly, waiting for their shuttle to pick them up, when Zaeed sidled over to her and spoke in her ear, barely loud enough for her to hear him.

"If you ask me, Shepard, that man's a fool."

Her eyes went wide and she was struggling to formulate a response when the shuttle landed and Zaeed vaulted aboard.


	2. Chapter 2

Zorya was a pretty planet with a monstrous carbuncle of a refinery blotting its landscape. At least that made their target easy to find, Shepard thought. The shuttle dropped her off nearby with Garrus and Zaeed, and they geared up and headed inside.

Zaeed was focusing on his radio, hacking in to communications between the Blue Suns mercs said to be on site. It soon became clear not only that things had become quite nasty at the refinery – as the corpses strewn around testified – but also that their shuttle landing had been noticed. It wasn't long before they were engaged with some troopers, and the gunfire had begun.

The radio crackled and Shepard heard a man's voice giving orders to the Blue Suns not to retreat or he would kill them himself. She raised an eyebrow at Zaeed. "That guy sounds like he has a personal vendetta. What gives?"

"Vido," Zaeed snarled. "My old partner. Set up the Suns together about 20 years ago."

Shepard paused, sank down behind a pillar. "Wait. You're telling me that you founded the Blue Suns?"

"Long time ago, Shepard," Zaeed said, a surly expression on his face. He clearly didn't want to talk about it.

"Christ, Massani. You don't think this is something I should have known before we got here?"

"Don't see why. We're just here to do the job."

Shepard was exasperated. "Are we really? You want to tell me why you're here shooting at him now, after you used to work together? And why he's so insistent that nobody back down, no matter what, to the extent he would kill his own men?"

"God, Shepard. You never give up, do you," Zaeed said with an exaggerated sigh. "Look, the guy is a monster. Was an ally once, then betrayed me and got six men to hold me down while he shot me in the face at point blank range. Took _six_ of them," he chuckled bitterly. "Thought he'd killed me, but I'm tougher to get rid of than that. Been trying to find him ever since, slippery bastard. Well not any more. He's gonna get what's coming to him."

So that's what all this was about. Shepard exhaled angrily. This was no paid mercenary job at all, it was all about revenge. And he'd gotten her and Garrus there alongside him, by hiding the truth. To think she had trusted him…

"We're going to talk about this later Massani, you can count on it."

"So long as Vido is dead, you can talk my ear off for as long as you want, Shepard."

Of course, things went downhill from there. Vido was waiting inside the gatehouse to the refinery, standing with some of his men on a balcony. There was an inevitable verbal confrontation between him and Zaeed, both men posturing like cockerels while Shepard rolled her eyes silently. Zaeed started shooting first, way off target – or so everybody thought. It didn't take long to realise that he was actually shooting through pipes and igniting the flammable gas within. The first explosion took out three of Vido's cronies, and flames began to sweep rapidly through the refinery.

"Shit," Shepard shouted. "The workers!"

She began to run towards the main facility in the direction of the screams emanating from the building, Garrus hot on her tail.

"Shepard! Vido's getting away!" Zaeed's shout was desperate, and she saw with dismay that he was chasing after his old partner, ignoring the plight of the innocent workers in the burning building.

"Get your ass back here Massani, right now! You started this, you get these people out!" Shepard was furious at the man, his reckless actions and his complete disregard for human life. She knew she was a tough captain, but she was always fair. This – this was not fair.

"Shepard, come on…" Zaeed began, trailing off when he saw the look on her face. "I might not get another chance."

"And these people won't get another chance to wake up in the morning unless we get this fire that _you _caused put out. I don't want to hear it, Massani. Get on the extinguishers, _now._" She was red hot with rage now, almost growing in height as she glared intensely at Zaeed. To her relief, she saw him back down and, without another word, he began to search for the controls to the pipework and the extinguishers.

It took some time but they managed to save all the workers. Once they were all out of the refinery, their attention turned to the mercenaries. Too late, as they watched Vido's gunship soar into the sky with the merc leader safely on board.

"Goddamn you, Shepard, you just cost me the last twenty years of my life," Zaeed advanced on her, rifle pointing at her head. She felt Garrus tense up beside her, reaching for his own gun.

It all seemed to happen so quickly after that. Zaeed ejected the used-up heatsink from his weapon, which must have landed in a puddle of fuel. Both Shepard and Garrus were thrown backwards by the force of the resulting explosion. Her ears were ringing as she slowly picked herself up and shook her head to reorient herself.

Massani was on the ground, trapped beneath a steel beam, swearing and cursing.

"Fuck you, Shepard. He was right there. Right there! I wanted to kill you, goddamn it. Twenty years! Fuck you."

Shepard leaned over the ranting mercenary, pulling out her pistol and pressing the barrel to his head. He finally fell into silence and stared into her eyes as they stood there in this position, a perfect tableau of threat.

Shepard sighed and lowered the pistol. "Don't you ever do that again while you're in my squad. You should know by now that the mission always comes first. You showed me your weakness today – you let your old grudge get the better of you. I should kill you for your insubordination, but lucky for you that you're more use to me alive. Get up."

She beckoned to Garrus to help lift the beam from Zaeed and he gingerly got to his feet, his head low. He didn't say another word on the way back to the shuttle, and disappeared into his quarters as soon as they got back to the Normandy.

* * *

Shepard couldn't remember the last time she had felt this angry. Not even the Illusive Man had put her in such a rage. Zaeed had not only ignored her orders, but had put the lives of innocents at risk by doing so. She had no patience for people who put their selfish needs above those of so many others. And to condemn so many to death, just for the burning need for vengeance… Unforgivable.

She knew she needed to show Massani who was the boss on this ship, and what happened to people who disobeyed her orders. Part of her thought that she should have left him trapped on that godforsaken planet to die slowly - but while she was hard, she wasn't heartless. She sat back and closed her eyes, trying to think of the best way to punish the old mercenary. Words and physical reprimands had not worked so far; he seemed immune to any criticism and was still regularly overstepping the mark on her ship. She knew she had to be creative.

Zaeed was sitting on the edge of his bunk taking off his boots when Shepard stormed through the door, eyes burning.

"We need to talk, Massani."

"Aw, Shepard, I appreciate the sentiment but I don't really think we have that kind of relationship."

The man was insufferable. Shepard rolled her eyes.

"I mean that last mission, as you well know. What the hell were you thinking? How can I trust you to have my back in this whole fight when you can't even focus on anything except your own petty revenge?"

"Yeah, yeah, you've already said. I'm a big boy, Shepard, I know what I'm doing. I don't need you telling me what to do."

The words Shepard wanted to spit out in response to Zaeed's goading rose up her throat, but she closed her eyes and swallowed them down. Arguing was getting her nowhere with the man. She needed to go to plan B.

Shepard stalked across the room and loomed over Zaeed, who looked up at her curiously. She took a deep breath.

"So, big boy, huh? Care to prove that to me?"

Zaeed huffed out a laugh. "What's that supposed to mean, Shepard? You yanking my chain?"

She moved closer to him, in his personal space now. "What do you think it means, Massani?"

"I'm thinking it sounds like you're coming on to me, sweetheart. Which, you know, is a bit of a fucking surprise, all things considered. But I can't say I blame you."

Shepard put her hands on her hips. "Arrogant bastard."

"You know it," Zaeed said, smirking.

"Well, come on then. You going to show me, or not?"

Zaeed reclined on his pillow and looked her up and down. "Ladies first, I believe the saying is."

She had expected as much from him and had prepared for the moment. It was clear from the look of surprise in his eyes that he had _not_ expected her to unbuckle her chest armour and let it fall to the floor. She was wearing only a black lace bra underneath, dark nipples visible through the fabric. Her caramel skin prickled and pebbled in the cool air.

"Your turn, I believe," she said, fighting the urge to cross her arms.

"Well, well. This is an interesting turn of events," he said, standing up to unclip his own armour. He was more careful than Shepard had been, removing his chest plate and pauldrons and stashing them in a nearby cupboard. Shepard ran her eyes over his exposed chest, solid muscle under a light smattering of curly hair peppered with grey.

"Now we're even," he said, a half-smile on his lips. "So what's next?"

She didn't say a word, simply unzipping her pants and stepping out of them, kicking them to one side of the room. Standing there in only her bra and matching lacy knickers, she stared him directly in the face, her expression serious and her eyes sparking with challenge.

It was at this point that Zaeed began to lose his composure. She watched him carefully and noticed how he swallowed hard and how his eyes began to glaze, blinking quickly. His breathing had sped up, and a muscle in his undamaged cheek was twitching. She grinned inwardly.

"Go on," she said, raising her chin slightly. When he didn't move, she stepped forward and grasped his belt, pulling him towards her.

"Need some help with that, old man?" Her tone was mocking now, her fingers working at the buckles of his pants.

"You just can't wait to lay your eyes on the goods, eh, Shepard?"

Unless you knew Zaeed, it probably wouldn't have been possible to spot the shake in his voice – but Shepard was perceptive, and she noticed. He was out of his comfort zone now, and she intended to keep him there a bit longer.

"Drop 'em, Massani," Shepard said. The mercenary obliged with a hard smile, pushing the pants down his legs and sitting back on the bed.

"Happy now?" Zaeed said.

"Not yet," she said, leaning in to shove him back so he was lying flat on the bed.

"Don't speak," she said as she unclipped her bra and dropped it to the floor beside the bed.

"Not a word," she said, as she slid her fingers beneath the waistband of her knickers and began to slowly slide them down her thighs. Looking at his expression as she stepped elegantly out of her final item of clothing and stood naked and proud before him, she didn't think he could say anything if he tried.

"I don't want you to make a single sound," she whispered into his ear as she rolled her body over his, skin against skin. He complied, nostrils flaring as she pressed her breasts against him, rubbing her nipples over his chest.

She moved her lips against his, feeling him open his mouth and respond to her. Their tongues duelled, each of them struggling for dominance in the kiss. Shepard could feel how much he wanted her and she wriggled her body against him, making him screw his eyes tight shut to keep control. She knew she was as aroused as him, her thighs sticky with moisture.

Shepard broke the kiss first, after what seemed like hours. She was breathless and panting as she sat up and shimmied her body along Zaeed's chest until she was straddling his shoulders.

"Make me come," she ordered him, her voice hoarse and alien.

She felt his fingers digging into her hip bones as he pulled her down on to him, his lips against her wet heat. She felt the tip of his tongue flicker over her clitoris experimentally before he began to lick her more enthusiastically, alternating between long, slow laving of her slit to harder, more focused attention on her bud. God, but he was _good_ at this, she thought wildly as she writhed above him, hissing in pleasure. She cried out as he took her clit between his lips and sucked lightly, sending electric bolts of pleasure shooting through her entire body. When he finally began to work her with his fingers as well, it was unbelievably hot and she came, shuddering violently, as he buried his face deep between her thighs and kissed her through her climax.

For a while, she couldn't move and she had almost forgotten why she had come here in the first place, if not to do that. Only the sensation of his fingers touching her again brought her back to herself, and she pushed his hand away and moved down his body.

Zaeed was already painfully hard, his cock swollen and throbbing and hot against her hand as she pulled down his underpants.

"Remember, I want you quiet," she said forcefully as she leaned over him, her breath playing over his length. She could feel the tension in him as she took him into her mouth, his desperate need to call out, his fight to maintain his silence. She ran her tongue along the underside of his shaft as she moved her lips over him, humming lightly with the pleasure of seeing him this way, completely at her mercy. She felt him twitch against her tongue and pulled back, his cock slipping out of her mouth as she sat up beside him.

"I bet you want to be inside me now, hm?" Shepard said with a smile. "I bet you want to know how I feel wrapped around you, how hot and wet for you I am. I bet you want nothing more right now than to feel yourself sliding deep inside me, as deep as you can go."

Zaeed nodded frantically, eyes wild but still not making a sound.

"I bet you're so desperate for me right now that you can't remember wanting another woman more in your life," she said, one eyebrow raised as she straddled him, his cock pressing lightly against her entrance.

More nodding.

Shepard lowered herself excruciatingly slowly, feeling him push inside, stretching and filling her. _God, _it was so good that she almost lost her resolve. She wriggled until he was seated deep inside her, then she rocked her hips gently, feeling him moving in and out of her. He was biting his lip, desperately trying to stay quiet as his hands roamed across her body, cupping her breasts and running his thumbs over her nipples.

"Oh Christ, Zaeed, you feel amazing," she whispered brokenly as she felt herself ripple around him, her muscles spasming and clenching.

It was too much for the mercenary. He groaned loud and deep, an almost animalistic sound. Hearing him made Shepard feel even more turned on, but she knew what she had to do.

With one swift movement, she raised herself off his body, his cock slipping out of her wetly. She swung herself off the bed and stood next to him, trying not to smile at the look of confusion and desperation on his face.

"What the fuck…?"

"I told you to make no noise. I wanted to see if you had learned to obey my orders. It seems as though you haven't," she said, struggling to keep a straight face.

"Shepard, please," he said roughly, reaching out his hand which she batted away as she pulled her armour loosely back on.

"Learn to obey orders and you might get what you want, Zaeed," she said, buckling up her pants.

"Fucking hell, Shepard. I don't believe you. You're a goddamn piece of work." Zaeed's face was a study in frustration, but there was no real anger in his tone and she thought she detected a hint of respect there.

"Clean yourself up, soldier," she said, lightly. "I'll need you to attend a debrief on the last mission, be ready in the war room in two hours."

She let herself out of the mercenary's room and laughed all the way to her cabin. And if, later, she imagined a scarred face between her legs when she touched herself, or climaxed at the memory of his cock pumping inside her - well, that would be her secret.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, so this one is finished. I know it took an odd turn but I hope people enjoyed the smut and Shepard putting Zaeed in his place. If you did, please let me know! I'd planned to leave it here but would consider a sequel/epilogue/continuation if people want it.


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